{"product_id":"laissez-faire-experiment-book-w-walker-hanlon-9780691213415","title":"The Laissez-Faire Experiment","description":"Why Britain’s attempt at small government proved unable to cope with the challenges of the modern world  In the nineteenth century, as Britain attained a leading economic and political position in Europe, British policymakers embarked on a bold experiment with small and limited government. By the outbreak of the First World War, however, this laissez-faire philosophy of government had been abandoned and the country had taken its first steps toward becoming a modern welfare state. This book tells the story of Britain’s laissez-faire experiment, examining why it was done, how it functioned, and why it was ultimately rejected in favor of a more interventionist form of governance.  Blending insights from modern economic theory with a wealth of historical evidence, W. Walker Hanlon traces the slow expansion of government intervention across a broad spectrum of government functions in order to understand why and how Britain gave up on laissez-faire. It was not abandoned because Britain’s leaders lost faith in small government as some have suggested, nor did it collapse under the growing influence of working-class political power. Instead, Britain’s move away from small government was a pragmatic and piecemeal response—by policymakers who often deeply believed in laissez-faire—to the economic forces unleashed by the Industrial Revolution.","brand":"WoB","offers":[{"title":"- \/ - \/ -","offer_id":50541077790993,"sku":"","price":0.0,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":true},{"title":"GB \/ NEW \/ GARDNERS","offer_id":50541078872337,"sku":"NGR9780691213415","price":42.0,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":true},{"title":"US \/ GOOD \/ SBYB","offer_id":53117503570193,"sku":"CIN0691213410G","price":0.0,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":false}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0784\/4072\/6801\/files\/0691213410.jpg?v=1751231359","url":"https:\/\/www.worldofbooks.com\/en-gb\/products\/laissez-faire-experiment-book-w-walker-hanlon-9780691213415","provider":"World of Books ","version":"1.0","type":"link"}